Gas prices are down temporarily, so on Sunday we decided to pile into the MR2 and hit the road.
We meandered south along Highway 89 through Yarnell and Peeples Valley, stopping at the scenic overlook along the way (as usual). The distance was clouded with dust or smoke, not sure which:
As we were taking photos, a gentleman drives up and we chat for a bit about Arizona, gas prices, and the beautiful weather. We tell him of our plan to go through Parker, and he recommends a place to eat along the way.
We take our time as we head southwards along Highway 71, then onto Highway 60, and eventually to I10. We get almost to the California border, but decide to turn north onto AZ Highway 1, through the indian reservation. Along this highway we see field after field of hay:
Not to mention one field that was full of sheep!:
We stop to eat lunch at the recommended 'Blue Water Casino'. The food is crap, but the casino sits right on the Colorado River, and so we enjoy the scenery more than the food.
And for anybody who is under the impression that it is winter.... go to Parker, AZ. It was 92 degrees there on Sunday, November 23rd... in the summer it will get up into the 120's.
After Parker, we drove up highway 95 towards Lake Havasu, and along the way stopped at the Parker Dam, where the hydroelectric station was churning along to power the pumping station for the Colorado River Aqueduct. The parker dam has the distinction of being the deepest (though not the tallest) dam in the world... everybody say OOOoooo:
From there we arrived in Lake Havasu. We stopped long enough to have an ice cream and drive over the London Bridge, but by this time we were both tired and lacked the motivation to get out and take pictures. We decided to head home.
We drove north through the mountainous landscape as the sun dipped towards the horizon:
A random shot out the window of the car (the joy of long arms) as the sun makes its final decent, the highway blurring by underneath us:
11 hours after we set out we returned home to 40 degree weather and some hungry dogs.
6 comments:
Thanks Tombo for this fine armchair adventure! The pictures are great, and I enjoyed reading your links.... learned a lot about Parker and the world's deepest dam.
Your beard's looking good too!
The whole set is really good. Once again, you have the ability to make everyday and possibly mundane sights more beautiful.
So what did the whole Yoda speak say?
Great tour, Tombo. But 11 hours on the road? You have more stamina than I do!
SOLB - I never even knew that the Parker Damn existed, let alone that it powers the aqueduct pumping system. :) And thanks for the beard compliment. :)
Melissa - well thanks! I think I am just really easily amused by the mundane. :)
The whole text can be seen here.
Catalyst - I've always loved just being on the road. Even when I had just gotten my license I would drive up to flagstaff or tucson just to see new places, have lunch, and turn around. :)
I too thank you for the day trip, one I'm very unlikely to make.
Glad you enjoyed GrannyJ!
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